Removable floor-strip.



w. s. MITCHELL. REMOVABLE FLOOR STRIP. APPLICATION FILED T113119, 1910.

' 982,522. Patented Jan. 24, 1911.

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o ///fl ///////////7////////////////// WALTER S. MITCHELL, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

REMOVABLE FLOOR-STRIP.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 24, 1911.

Application filed February 19, 1910. Serial No. 544,878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WVALTER S. MITCHELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San F rancisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Removable Floor-Strips, of which the following is a specification.

The object of the present invention is to provide a removable strip, which can be used with concrete or other floors, in order to facilitate the laying of electric wires thereon.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a concrete floor constructed in accordance with my invention; Fig. 2 is a sectional view of a modification; Fig. 3 is a similar View of a second modification; Fig. 4 is a similar view of a third modification.

Referring to the form of the invention shown in Fig. 1, 21 indicates a support for the concrete floor 22, there being also supported upon said support a floor strip, or finished strip, 1 of wood or other suitable material, which has an upper surface flush with the upper surface of the concrete, for the purpose of nailing, or otherwise securing thereon, the carpet or other floor covering. Said strip 1 is beveled or undercut at both edges one edge 2 of the strip being so undercut for the purpose of leaving a space in which to lay electric wires, while the other edge 3 is beveled for the purpose of facilitating the insertion and removal of the strip, the bevel being such that the top and bottom thereof are at the same distance from the top of the other edge. Upon the top of the strip is laid and secured thereto a finishing strip 4 of hard wood, to provide a finish to the margin of the floor, being on-a level with the linoleum or carpet laid upon the floor and upon the remainder of the strip 1 as far as the edge of the narrow strip 4. The outer edge of the thin strip t is parallel with, but at a short distance from, the outer edge of the wide strip 1, leaving a mortise 6 to receive the lower edge of the base board 7. This strip 1 can thus be removed by raising its inner edge, and drawing the strip inward from the base board.

In combination with the longitudinal strips which are laid at the margin of the floor, there is also provided a substantially square corner piece 8 which is laid at the corner of the floor, and which is movable independently of the other strips. The cor ner piece is, in general, similar to the longitudinal strips 1, except that the mortise formed in said corner piece is in the outer side only, the other outer side being flush with the outer surface of-the base board, so that the corner piece is removed by raising first the beveled side 11 which is opposite to said lnortised side.

With this construction, by forming holes or recesses in the outer edge of the strip, the electric wires 20 can be conducted down the wall of the room at any point to the space left by the undercut outer side of the strip. By removing the corner piece the electrician can fish the electric wires and lead them to said corner, and in this manner he can lay the wires out of sight, if necessary, all around the room. A further advantage is that no nailing of the wires is required, as they are merely laid in the grooves or conduits formed therefor by the strips. A further advantage is that with this invention it is easyto comply with the rule usually in force forbidding two wires of different voltage to be led along the same track, since even if the two wires start from points in proximity to each other and terminate in points in proximity to each other, as shown at 12, 13, they can be led in opposite directions around the room and thus be laid in different tracks.

It will be understood, that the upper finishing strip 4 while convenient in some cases, is not essential to my invention, as it may be dispensed with, and the main strip may be employed of uniform thickness. Such upper finishing strip 4;, however, when used, may be formed integral with the lower finishing strip, and, for the purpose of this invention, the upper and lower finishing strips may be considered as a single com pound finishing strip.

A strip may be also employed of such thickness as to lay linoleum, carpet over the linoleum, and the exposed finishing strip all llush with one another. Thus the linoleum may be laid on the floor and flush with the strip 1, and the carpet over the linoleum and the strip 1 and flush with the polished hard wood strip 4.

In another form of the invention, shown in Fig. 2, the strip is formed with an undercut mortise 9 in each edge 2, so that two conduits are formed for the laying of wires.

The invention also facilitates the laying of wires to a central point. This is done by using strips 10 which are, in general,

2. In combination with the flooring of a similar to thestrlps used for the margin of room and a support therefor, a fioor strip the floor. A corner piece 18 will be used in like manner as the corner piece 8, where it is desired to connect two such strips at right angles with one another. In the undercut mortised edges 14 of the strips 10 the wires are laid, and are led upward through recesses 15 cut through the edges of the corner piece 18. In such case the strips are retained in place by providing means for engaging the concrete of the floor, to

prevent the strips being raised except when it is desired to do so. This means may be, as shown in Fig. 3, in the form of a projection 16 formed in the edge of the strip to fit into a corresponding recess in the concrete, or, as shown in Fig. I, be in the form of pins 17 projecting from the edge of the strip, which engage the concrete.

I claim 1. In combination with the flooring of a room and a support therefor, a floor strip loosely supported by said support and formed with a recess to provide, in combination with said flooring, a cavity to receive a wire or the like, and means for pre venting the raising of the other edge of said strip independently of the first named edge, substantially as described.

loosely supported by said support having an undercut edge, and means for preventing the raising of the. other edge independently of the undercut edge, said other edge being provided with a recess to receive a wire or the like, substantially as described.

3. In a building construction, the combi- I nation with a floor of concrete, of a baseboard, said flooring having a floor-strip-receiving-mortise contiguous to and extending beneath said base-board, and a flooring strip fitting said mortise and projecting beneath said base-board and providing an exposed portion suitable for nailing a carpet to, said strip cooperating with the walls of the mortise beneath the base-board to inclose a conduit for electric wires or the like, the front of the strip shaped to permit its ready removal from the mortise when lifted as on a hinge substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

IVALTER S. MITCHELL.

Vitnesses: 

